


snapbacks and tattoos

by fexillusion



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Tattoos, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Grinding, How Do I Tag, M/M, Smut, keith is his client, posting this before s7 drops, shiro is a tattoo artist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-09
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-06-24 13:07:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15631287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fexillusion/pseuds/fexillusion
Summary: Lance wants Keith to hook up with one of the guys down at the tattoo shop he goes to. Keith is hesitant and not sure what to expect, until he gets down there and meets Takashi Shirogane.





	snapbacks and tattoos

**Author's Note:**

  * For [arahir](https://archiveofourown.org/users/arahir/gifts).



> so, basically, i've had this in my drafts for MONTHS and i've never had the courage to post it because i'm extremely self conscious about my writing but i'm dedicating this to someone who has inspired me on this story; through her kind words and just all around always being a positive force on my dash on tumblr. i hope this isn't creepy randomly gifting this to her, but she and all of her amazing friends and followers deserve something and this is my way of showing my gratitude!

Keith was exhausted, mentally and physically drained, a headache was starting to form behind his eyes and he pressed the palms of his hands to them to try and ease the tension as Lance continued on. 

“Lance, for the last time, I’m not interested in meeting your friend.” 

The brunet didn’t seem to hear him, carrying on with his ramblings about some guy he had ran into about a month ago and how he was single and Lance was now trying to play matchmaker. 

“C’mon man! It’s not like I’m asking you to fuck him! Although-“ 

Keith raised his eyes in a glare, shutting the other up momentarily. “No.”

“Why not?”

Keith cocked an eyebrow at his friend. “Because the last time you tried hooking me up with someone you met, it ended with him ditching me to pay the bill. The answer is no.”

“That happened three years ago Keith, you can’t hold that over my head forever. How was I supposed to know he’d ditch?”

Keith rolled his eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Ever since Lance had came home from getting his new tattoo done he hadn’t been able to stop talking about this guy he’d met. Lance wasn’t gay, had a girlfriend named Allura and they’d been together for as long as Keith could remember, but he also knows how lonely Keith has been lately and so therefore, acts like a Cupid and tries to set him up with random guys. 

This weeks match seems to be his tattoo artist friend.

“Look, I’m not asking for you to agree to go out with him. Just meet him; come down to the shop with me next week when I go to get my touch up and just hang out. He’s chill, I promise. Plus he’s only like 26 so he’s still hot.”

“You’re not even into dudes, how do you know if he’s hot?” Keith pulled out his phone, quickly replying to a text from Pidge before tossing it on the counter in front of him. 

“I may not have a thing for dudes but trust me, I _know_ when someone is good looking. I mean, have you seen me?” There was a waggle of eyebrows that Keith chose to ignore. 

“Sadly, I have.” Teasing the Cuban boy had always been one of Keith’s favorite hobbies. 

Lance was the one to roll his eyes now, making Keith snort. “Whatever. Does this mean you’ll come with me next week? I’ll even bring Allura so she can keep you company if things don’t go good.”

The other pushed his bottom lip out in a pout, his brown eyes widening and giving Keith his world known puppy face. The older boy sighed, knowing his friend wouldn’t stop until he agreed. “Fine, I’ll come with you. But please, if things don’t go right, don’t ever set me up with anyone ever again.”

Lance smirked, holding his hand out so Keith could shake it. “Deal.”

————  
The next week passed by too fast for Keith’s liking and before he knew it he was walking with Lance and Allura to the tattoo studio down the street from where Keith and Lances apartment building was. He’d walked by it probably a thousand times on his way to work but had never had any interest in going in. 

Not until now, that is. 

_The Black Lion_ , the sign out front said, hanging over the sidewalk and the statue of a roaring lion stood proudly by the front door. Lance was the first one to open the door, a bell sounding, letting Allura go ahead of him with a kiss to her hand. Keith followed behind her and Lance shut the door and his eyes were immediately drawn to the thousands of drawings plastered over the walls to his left and right. The sounds of some heavy metal song played through the speakers of the shop, slightly drowned out by the buzzing of the machines. 

At the sound of a bell, a young lady, probably no older than twenty-one, popped her head out from behind a counter, a tray of piercings in her hand and she set them down before turning to the trio. 

She smiled at Lance. “Back already?” 

Lance just nodded, bending forward to ask her something in a whisper and she just nodded, smiling herself before casting her eyes towards Keith who stood awkwardly to the side. 

“Shiro should be done with his client soon, if you don’t mind waiting?” 

It took him a second to understand that she was talking to _him_ and not Lance. He cleared his throat and nodded, the air around him suddenly thickening. 

“Y-Yeah, that’s fine.”

She smiled again, the piercings in her lip stretching a bit and Keith inwardly grimaced. 

“As for you, Mr. Mcclain, Hunk is ready in the back if you wanna go on?” 

Lance nodded, grabbing Allura’s hand and before Keith had a chance to open his mouth to ask him _what the fuck?_ he was already disappearing around the corner into another section. 

Keith sighed, shaking his head and he was half tempted to leave the shop and never return. But instead he felt himself drawn to one of the walls covered in pieces done by the artists at the shop, a few of them had the same name scrawled in the corner. 

_Takashi Shirogane_.

He felt himself reaching out to touch the laminated papers, stroking fingers over the different colors and shapes. His eyes were drawn to one piece in particular; a lion with a red mane and its mouth open in a snarl. 

His mouth parted as he looked at the drawing, finger tip following the flow of the lions mane, admiring the stunning bright red and maroon colors that had been used to color it, eyes a glimmering shade of gold and it’s teeth pearl white, shades of blue outlining them. 

“Find something you like?” A sudden deep voice asked from behind him, breaking Keith out of his head and he jumped back, nearly colliding with the broad chest behind him. 

He heard the other let out a chuckle, firm hands grabbing his shoulders to steady him. “Easy there, tiger.”

Keith turned around, coming face to face with the most breathtaking man Keith had ever seen and yeah, Lance _was right_. 

The man in question wore a tight black tank top that showed off his arms, covered in black and blue swirls that stretched all the way down his forearm on his left, a prosthetic began above his elbow on his right hand and Keith wondered how he got it. Ripped blue jeans clung to his thighs and a SnapBack was on his head, flipped around so his bangs draped through the snap, a shocking silver-white and Keith felt the urge to touch it. To touch _him_.

Shiro smiled, white teeth showing and Keith suddenly forgot how to breathe. He held out a hand for Keith to take, cold metal touching his fingertips when he grasped his hand. “You must be Keith.”

“Y-Yeah.”

“What’s the matter, cat got your tongue?” Shiro laughed again, a hearty sound, eyes soft and alight. “Lance told me a bit about you.”

Keith groaned, burying his face in his hand. “I’ll kill him.”

Shiro snorted and god, Keith wouldn’t grow tired of his laugh any time soon. “I promise it wasn’t anything bad. He just mentioned a few things that caught my interest.”

Keith raised his head, eyebrow cocked in question. “Like what, exactly?”

Shiro tilted his head a bit. “Just that your name was Keith, you were single, and according to both him and his girlfriend; quite desperate.”

Keith rolled his eyes, already plotting Lances demise in his head. “I am not desperate.”

Shiro’s own cocked eyebrow made him question his statement. “I’m not saying you are.”

They stood there for a minute, sizing each other up before Shiro cleared his throat and jerked his head back towards one of the rooms on the opposite side of the parlor. “I saw you eyeing that lion. You ever had a tattoo?”

Keith shook his head, throat slowly relaxing as he spoke. “Nah, Lance has always been the one to get tattoos and piercings, ever since we were in high school.”

Shiro nodded his head. “Ever thought about getting one? I mean, you’re already here.”

Keith’s eyes widened, mouth dropping open before closing once more. “I-I don’t... I couldn’t.”

“Why not? You’re not scared of needles are you?” Shiro teased. 

Keith playfully shoved at his shoulder, laughing a bit to himself. “It’s just... I came down here with Lance since we live right down the street, just to meet you and wait for him to get finished with his touch up. A tattoo takes a long time to do, doesn’t it?”

“It can, depends on who’s doing it and what size, how many colors, shading, outlining. A sketch can take several hours in itself.”

A small “jesus” escaped Keith’s mouth, mind wrapping around everything. “You must take great pride in your work then.”

Another smile broke out across Shiro’s face. “I do, that’s why I want to tattoo you.”

Keith bit at his lip as a blush broke out across his skin, suddenly thankful for the dim lighting in the lobby. 

The other sighed. “Maybe not today then, how about, I sketch something out for you and you can decide if you wanna come back to get it? How does that sound?”

Keith rolled the option over in his head, deciding what was the harm and nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

Shiro led him back to his work station, offering him a seat while he grabbed a sketch pad and a few pencils and pens. “So, you like lions?” 

Keith almost asked what gave that away and then realized he was talking about the drawing that had been on the wall. He nodded, “yeah, they’re not my favorite animal but they remind me of strength and courage.”

Shiro grabbed one of his pencils and started drawing something, Keith wondered what it would turn out to be. “They suit you, you know?” 

Keith's eyes scrunched together. “What does that mean?”

Without looking up, Shiro spoke. “You have a fire burning inside you that even I can detect, and I just met you. There’s something about you that screams courage and strength, it’s ironic how you were drawn to that picture out front.”

Keith’s blush only worsened. “Thanks? I think?”

Shiro chuckled, continuing his sketch. “Tell me more about yourself, I want this to be perfect.”

Keith stared at the man for a bit, choosing his next words carefully. “What all do you want to know?”

Shiro lifted the hand that wasn’t holding a pencil and waved it. “Anything. What do you do for a living? What do you study? Stuff like that.”

Ah, he could do that. “I was working as a mechanic when I was about sixteen with my father up until I went away for college. Now, I work part time in a computer parts store with my friend Pidge. It’s... not much really, she does a lot of the work. I’m just there as backup in case she needs something delivered or picked up immediately. I’m currently in my last year for school, I wanted to be a pilot when I was younger but never got the chance so I went into engineering. Um, I’m an only child, never really had many friends growing so I’ve always been a sort of a loner.”

Keith paused for a minute, trying to pick his next sentence. “My favorite animal is a hippo if you were curious.”

He said it with a smile and didn’t expect the sudden laughter from Shiro as he paused in his drawing. “A hippo? Really?”

“They’re cute, shut up.” Keith stuck his tongue out, giggling to himself a bit. 

Shiro just shook his head, going back to sketching. 

“Anything else you need to know?”

Shiro shook his head. “I think I got it about done, just a few more minutes.”

Keith nodded his head, gnawing at his bottom lip suddenly feeling anxious. 

A knock on the door had Keith’s head turning and he groaned as Lance poked his own in, a smirk on his lips and Keith really wanted to smack it off him. 

“Hey man, I’m about finished with my touch up, you almost done here?” There was a lilt to Lance's voice, making Keith roll his eyes. 

Keith nodded his head. “Yeah, he’s just drawing something up for me.”

“Ooooh~, finally gonna lose your tattoo virginity Kogane?” 

“Please don’t ever call it that again.” Keith closed his eyes. “And besides, I’m not getting it today.”

“Then why-“

“And done!” Shiro stated, placing down his pencils and picking up the sketchbook, turning it around and showing Keith and Lance what he’d been working on. 

“Whoa.” Lance exclaimed, moving forward into the room to look closer at the sketch. 

“Holy shit.” Keith felt like the wind had gotten knocked out of him as he laid eyes on it. 

The lion was breathtaking, it’s mane feathered out around its face and Keith could see marks from colored pencils where he would add color and shading. The face was where it really caught his attention, half of it looked like a normal lion, fur scrawled out in lines but the other half was drawn to look like a robot, eyes steely and focused on Keith like a predator staring down prey. 

“Damn, Shiro. Maybe next time I should have you sketch my tattoo.” Lance joked, clasping Shiro’s hand in a handshake and laughing. 

“I’m telling Hunk you said that.” 

“Ah, the big guy wouldn’t mind. But seriously dude, you’re fucking talented.”

A sheepish smile spread across the artists lips, his prosthetic hand coming up to scratch behind his head and Keith tore his eyes away from the drawing long enough to admire the stretch of muscles and veins in his bicep. 

“I’m not as good as I’d like to be, but thanks dude.” Shiro’s eyes fell to Keith next. “So, what do you think? Good enough to come back to?”

Keith focused his eyes on Shiro for a moment, taking in his sharp jaw, white bangs and the scar that stretched across the bridge of his nose and his cheeks. Shiro gave him a toothy grin, like he needed to be persuaded. 

“I think you might just have yourself a new client.”

————  
“I can’t believe you’re actually going through with this.” Lance said, leaning against the doorframe of Keith’s bedroom, watching the older tug on a shirt. 

“You’re the one who encouraged me.” Keith replied, ignoring his friends antics to focus on getting ready. 

“Yeah but,” Lance began. “You always said you never would get a tattoo.”

Keith simply shrugged, pulling his hair back into a ponytail. “I changed my mind. Besides, you saw that drawing. It was incredible. I only said I’d ever get one if someone was worth my time.”

Lance smirked, eyes narrowing on Keith. “Is _Shiro_ worth your time?”

Keith scoffed, brushing past his roommate to locate his boots in the living room. “You’re the one who was trying to play matchmaker.”

“So that’s a yes right? I did good?”

Keith didn’t answer, grabbing his jacket after tugging on his boots and heading to the door, Lance trailing behind him and yelling out, “I expect details tonight!”

Keith only shook his head. He had gone for a later appointment time so that the shop wouldn’t be as busy when he got there, too many people made Keith feel weird. Plus, he wouldn’t admit it out loud to Lance or anyone if they asked, he wanted to spend some time with Shiro. He had given the artist his number so they could set up a time and date when he’d last come down here about two weeks ago now and Shiro has told him that most of their late night times were filled up until today’s date, but Keith told him that any day was fine. So, he settled. 

But, they hadn’t only talked about the appointment, in fact they had talked about a little bit of everything. From Keith’s past to his family and how they still spoke every now and then, his dad still owned the same mechanic shop and how being a tattoo artist literally changed Shiro’s life around. He’d been in the military before, a war hero actually, and he told Keith the basics of his injury and his lost arm, the scarred tissue and how he still suffers from flashbacks and trauma. Keith felt his heart wrench when he told him that, but he was glad he was safe now. 

Just the thought of seeing Shiro again had Keith’s heart racing in his chest, nearly breaking out from behind his ribs. They’d met up about a week ago at the coffee shop next door to the parlor, where Keith usually goes when he’s in a rush to get to class or he’s pulling an all-nighter. They’d discussed the placement and size of the tattoo, what colors he would wants and how much if any background. 

He’d decided to have it put on his shoulder blade, easily covered for work and he had let Shiro decide the rest, only telling him that his favorite colors were red, black and purple. The older had just laughed and said he’d show Keith what he’d drawn up when they met next. 

Which is where Keith was now, opening the door to the shop and instantly it felt like he was being warped to another planet. The door shut with a heavy thud, the bell ringing could barely be heard over the other noises in the shop despite it being near closing. 

The girl Keith had met last time stood at the desk once again, typing away at her computer and she looked up when Keith approached. 

“I’m here for Shiro?” It came out a question but Keith was too busy focusing on not trying to dart back out the door. 

The girl smiled. “Ah, Shiro is ready for you in the back, you can go on ahead if you want.”

Keith nodded his head before turning on his heel and heading into the corridor where the tattoo artists had their own room, finding Shiro’s at the end of the hall and knocking gently to get the man's attention. 

He smiled when Keith entered, dressed in a unbuttoned flannel shirt with a grey tank top on underneath, black jeans covered his legs and this time he was hatless. Keith admired how white his hair looked in the bright lights hanging overhead before greeting the artist with a small, “Hey.”

“I’m so glad you didn’t chicken out on me.” Shiro leaned forward and Keith’s breath stuttered when he felt the man's lips press against his ear, his cologne strong and he could smell the hint of mint from the gum he was chewing. “Keep it between me and you but I think everyone else had a running bet on if you would show or not.”

“Oh yeah?” Keith lazily cocked his eyebrow. “Did you put in on it?”

“Nah but now I wish I had.” Shiro pulled back and Keith had to fight the urge to whimper. Shiro was so _warm_ , his entire aura reminded Keith of coals after the fires been put out, his eyes the color of smoke and ash. God, he was beautiful. 

He turned, grabbing the book he’d used last time to sketch Keith’s tattoo and flipped a few pages before turning it to reveal a colored and detailed design; shocking Keith with the vibrance of the colors. Reds, oranges, maroons, yellows and even blues decorated the paper. The robot side of the lion was silver with blue shadows, black outlining the mane with red and orange highlights through it and with the most piercing eyes Keith had ever seen before in a drawing. 

“So, what do you think?” Shiro asked. 

“I think, I don’t deserve to wear that tattoo.” Keith mock scoffed, a small smile creasing his lips. 

Shiro smiled in return. “Too late now, you’re already here.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“Take off your jacket and shirt and I’ll start the placement.”

Keith did as told, ignoring his shaky hands as he tugged his jacket off and set it on a chair in the corner of the room, reaching down to grab the hem of his shirt and lift it over his head, shaking his hair out of his eyes and laying it with his jacket. 

Shiro already had the stencil drawn and ready to go, holding it in his gloved hands and indicating to Keith to turn around so he could place it. Keith did, not even a second later feeling Shiro brush up behind him, a paper towel doused with something touched his shoulder and he jumped.

“Shit sorry,” he apologized. “It just caught me off guard.”

“It’s okay, just stay still with this next part, I don’t wanna cut your skin with the razor.”

Keith was about to ask what the razor was for but it didn’t take a genius. It quickly cleared any and all hair from his shoulder where the stencil would be and Keith braced himself, relaxing his entire body as shiro moved through one more step and then began applying the stencil. 

Shiro’s hands pressed on the middle of his shoulder, pushing down the stencil and carefully spreading them out. 

Once it was applied and he peeled the paper off, he allowed Keith to turn around, meeting his eyes with another one of his smiles. “You ready?”

Keith nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

————  
Keith’s shoulder felt numb, the constant buzzing and pricking of the needle had sort of put him in a daze. He didn’t know how long it’d been but the shop had already closed and all of the shops artists had packed up and were sitting out in the lounge. Hunk had come back a little while ago to see how it was going and from Shiro’s reassurance to Hunk, he was close to being done. 

Keith felt his body lulling off to sleep and he tried to fight it as much as he could but before he knew it Shiro was gently shaking him awake, the gun turned off the sound of gentle laughter from the lobby is the only thing he heard. 

“You okay? You kinda fell asleep near the end.” Shiro asked with a sheepish smile. 

Keith yawned, slowly raising up and swinging his legs over the side so he could stand and stretch, hearing the joints pop and his muscles in his back relaxed more. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you, it’s just been kind of a long day. Is it finished?” 

Shiro nodded, walking him over to a mirror and handing him another so he could look over his shoulder at the tattoo that was now branded into his skin. The colors were bold and stood out proudly on his shoulder, the lions faces staring back at him and he shivered just from looking at it.

“How’s it look?” Shiro had a hopeful look on his face and Keith met his eyes, smiling.

“It looks fantastic, thank you so much.”

“Any time.” 

Shiro wrapped the tattoo after applying a generous amount of Vaseline and gave him a small pamphlet on aftercare instructions, letting him get dressed afterwards as he cleaned up his station. 

By time they went out to the lobby and Shiro was walking him to the front door, eyes from the small group of artists and other employees slyly casting them glances. 

“Hey, so uh, I was wondering if it’s not too inconvenient or anything if you would want to, I don’t know, go to the movies or something?” Shiro asked, stepping outside with Keith so they were away from prying eyes. 

Keith looked up at him, the burn and itch at his shoulder from the tattoo fading away as he locked his eyes on Shiro. “Or something?”

“Y-Yeah, like a- like a date.” 

“A date?” Keith teased, stepping closer. 

“Yes, a date. If you don’t want to go then just-“

Keith’s hand pressed to his lips shut him up and the shorter smiled, teasingly kissing his cheek. “I’m joking, Shirogane. I will gladly go on a date with you.”

He moved his hand away and Shiro couldn’t hide his smile, gently clasping Keith’s hand in his own and pressing a kiss to the palm. “I- um, great! I’ll send you a text tomorrow morning!” 

Shiro was like a puppy and it was the cutest thing Keith had ever seen, the light behind Shiro’s eyes burning brighter. Keith giggled, pulling away and beginning his walk back home, a blush on his cheeks and his heart thumping against his ribs once again.

**Author's Note:**

> this is just the beginning of course, there are two other parts already written and i'm just going through and editing at the moment! I hope you enjoyed <3 comments and kudos are extremely appreciated.
> 
> Tumblr:  
> [main (anime blog)](https://04iwaizumi.tumblr.com/)  
> [sideblog (sheith blog)](https://paladin-sheith.tumblr.com/)


End file.
